The following is excerpted from the Deseret News. To read the full article, CLICK HERE.

One of the most interesting documents in the newest volume of the Joseph Smith Papers goes by the unassuming title, “Revelation, 27 July 1842.”

It happens to be one of the few contemporary records from Joseph Smith that talks about plural marriage, according to Elizabeth A. Kuehn, the lead historian on “Documents, Volume 10: May-August 1842.

The revelation, dictated by Joseph Smith, provided Latter-day Saint Newel K. Whitney with instructions to use in performing the plural marriage sealing of his daughter, Sarah Ann Whitney, to the Prophet. The Whitney family kept and preserved the document, which gives readers a “rare glimpse” into the early days of plural marriage, the historian said.

“We have this rare glimpse into Joseph’s thoughts,” Kuehn said. “Of course, because this is a revelation, it sometimes leaves us with more questions than answers, but I think it’s helpful to see how they are characterizing the marriage. … One challenge of working on this volume is that it really confronts plural marriage head on.”

The revelation is one of 105 documents found in “Documents, Volume 10,” which also features letters, discourses and other writings. The new volume was released Monday.

To read the full article, CLICK HERE.